


Honeysuckle

by wanderlustlights



Category: Glee
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Future Fic, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Past Blaine Anderson/Kurt Hummel, Slow Burn, The Wedding Date AU, Work In Progress, loosely based on the wedding date
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-10
Updated: 2020-09-24
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:09:01
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26387707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wanderlustlights/pseuds/wanderlustlights
Summary: In its plainest form, the honeysuckle is a symbol of pure happiness. In addition, it conveys messages of sweetness and affection, thanks to the sweet smelling aroma it gives off. At its heaviest interpretation, the honeysuckle represents the flames of love, and the tenderness for love that has been lost.It was stupid, really, when he thought about it. He should have seen it coming, had known in the back of his mind that they were on the outs, and even still had checked yes that he was bringing someone. When they broke up only a few days later, the RSVP was already sent and he’d been too mortified at the thought of having to call Blaine up and retract the plus one.He’d tried dating since then but each new guy was worse than the last and, on a drunken Google search one night, an escort had seemed to be the only plausible answer.
Relationships: Blaine Anderson/Other(s), Kurt Hummel/David Karofsky
Comments: 7
Kudos: 22





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> So this fic is based (somewhat loosely) on the movie The Wedding Date. Major props to my amazing girlfriend Zoe who came up with this idea back in June that then continued to grow and grow until... this came about. So really this has been months in the making. I'm not used to writing multichaptered fics much anymore, mainly only do oneshots, but this one _will_ be finished, I promise! 
> 
> AU where Kurt and Blaine never got back together after season 4, and also where Kurt and Dave kept in touch after 3.14 and become (sort of) friends before losing touch at the end of the summer after high school. 
> 
> Also I promise this'll pick up speed a bit more after the first chapter lol.
> 
> Credit for the meaning/explanation of honeysuckle and all other flowers mentioned as chapter titles can be found [here](https://gardenofedenflowershop.com/) if you're interested in reading more about them!

Kurt glanced over at the clock for the fifth time in nearly ten minutes now, sighing deeply at the time as he closed his eyes tightly.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to go, exactly. More that it was the fact that he was horrifically nervous, and had been for the past month. Ever since the company had matched him with someone and he’d felt his heart practically sink into his stomach, he’d had an ache that he hadn’t yet been able to shake. It was bad enough that he was going to his ex’s wedding. But then, to make matters even worse, he’d had to hire a damn escort because he couldn’t find a date himself. God, he was pathetic. Hiring some guy he didn’t even know to be his date and act as his boyfriend for the night, all so that he didn’t look so tragically alone… really, how low could he get.

He packed up his things slowly, trying to prolong the inevitable, even as he knew that he had somewhere to be.

“Hey,” he said as he made it to Isabelle’s office, knocking once on the door to grab her attention and seeing her bright smile as she looked up from her computer. “Just wanted to stop by before I left.”

She leaned forward a little with her elbows on the desk, her eyes seeming to bore into his the way they always did when she was excited over something. He’d come to know that look so well over the years, even after moving his way up in the company and out from under her wing. She’d become an amazing friend over the time he’d been there over the past eight years, and was more than an incredible mentor to him, but more than that she was probably still his favorite person there even after all this time.

“Well hey there,” she chirped back, and a few of the nerves seemed to vanish from his body, even if only briefly. She seemed to have that effect on him, oddly enough. “Are you headed out? I suppose it is about that time, huh.”

Kurt took a deep breath, trying to give her the most convincing smile he could. “Yeah, just wanted to say goodbye before I went.”

“Well you have fun there, okay? Even if it _is_ for your ex’s wedding. It might be hard, believe me I should know, but just— try to have a good time, okay? It’ll be fine.”

He nodded, more to himself than anything, even as he could feel the nerves come back in full force. “It’ll be fine,” he repeated, smiling reassuringly. “Anyway, I should go. I sort of have a date to get to.”

“Ooh, who with?”

“Blind date,” he said quickly, already backing away slowly with a smile. “Have a good weekend!”

“You too,” she replied as he gave her a small wave of his fingers and walked off down the hall to the elevators and made his way to the lobby on the ground floor.

Kurt pulled his coat closer over his chest as he stepped out onto the sidewalk and into the chilly early November weather. It was colder than usual, probably due at least in part to the amount of snow on the ground that had fallen a few days earlier. Checking his watch, he walked a little quicker, boots pounding on the pavement as he made his way to the coffee shop.

It was a spot that he’d found a few years earlier, about a twenty minute walk from his apartment that he’d moved into after being promoted, and one that he loved beyond compare. The overall atmosphere of the place reminded him a little of home, but with a bit more of a New York vibe to it with its brick walls and warm, ambient lighting. It was the best of both worlds, really. And the fact that he absolutely loved the baristas there certainly didn’t hurt.

He got his coffee quickly, taking a seat at a table where he could easily see the door to watch as each new patron entered, and each one that left who was undoubtedly not the one he was supposed to be meeting.

God, this was so stupid. Honestly, why was he even doing this? Other than some sense of self preservation, he really couldn’t think of a good reason. He didn’t necessarily _need_ to have a date. He didn’t really even need to go to this wedding at all if he didn’t want to. But after everything that had happened, after the cheating and the flowers and gifts that had followed, he and Blaine had made amends and actually rekindled their friendship along the way. They’d never dated again, despite being each other’s first loves, and in the end both were surprisingly fine with it. They’d each moved on, to bigger and brighter things and new people, and Kurt was more than glad for it. He was grateful that they had rebuilt their friendship and could still rely on one another even after Blaine had decided to move to California for college before staying there to pursue music.

Kurt had met Blaine’s fiancé a few times over the years, whenever Blaine would come visit in New York or when they would meet up somewhere back in Lima. Even still, he didn’t really know much about how they had met, or much of anything about their relationship, really. He always seemed to be fairly tight lipped about exposing any of the little details and Kurt didn’t push. The most he really knew was about how they had met after Blaine had graduated. He could still remember Blaine calling him some months later and gushing to him over his boyfriend and how ridiculously in love he was. It had been a little awkward, he’d admit, strange to hear Blaine talking like that about some new guy Kurt knew next to nothing about. Sure, he was happy for Blaine, was glad that he was happy, but was going through his own heartbreak at the time with Adam going back to England with Kurt still in New York. They’d promised to keep in touch but didn’t want to try long distance, and maintained that if they were ever in the same city again someday then maybe they could try again. It was comforting, to know that at the very least they hadn’t ruined any potential that they’d had, but it didn’t lessen the sting of knowing that it was ending. And that, coupled with hearing how happy Blaine was after moving on, just made it that much worse.

Kurt had dated some since his breakup with Adam, a few relationships that lasted a couple of months each and one that somehow managed to go on for two years. He still wasn’t quite sure how that had happened, seeing as he and Ian had next to nothing in common, other than an undeniable sexual chemistry. That didn’t make up for the fact that they just weren’t compatible otherwise, though, which had been their main downfall.

They’d still been together when Blaine had excitedly called to tell him about the upcoming nuptials after proposing, and even still when the invitation came.

It was stupid, really, when he thought about it. He should have seen it coming, had known in the back of his mind that they were on the outs, and even still had checked yes that he was bringing someone. When they broke up only a few days later, the RSVP was already sent and he’d been too mortified at the thought of having to call Blaine up and retract the plus one.

He’d tried dating since then but each new guy was worse than the last and, on a drunken Google search one night, an escort had seemed to be the only plausible answer.

Which brought him there, on a Thursday after work in his favorite coffee shop, waiting for his mystery man to walk through the door. They’d been exchanging emails for the past week or so since they’d been matched, setting up a time and place to meet up beforehand to discuss the wedding weekend and all of the minute details.

It was weird knowing that he would be spending such a momentous occasion with some guy he didn’t really know anything about other than him being known as _Escort 57D39K11_. The company seemed to pride themselves on anonymity so as not to attract stalkers or the like, and really only provided general descriptors such as height, and eye and hair colors.

He had to wonder who this guy would end up being, whether he’d be some insensitive creep or just some tall, hot man who happened to know just how hot he really was and had no issue in reveling in that fact and was a complete narcissist. Or even worse, what if Kurt ended up actually really liking him but this guy wanted nothing to do with him. God, he could feel himself spiraling, sinking further and further down that dark rabbit hole.

Kurt turned his attention back to the door, watching as each new patron entered, making note of their attire along the way. He and the mystery man had decided beforehand to keep one another informed of what they were wearing that day in emails sent that morning, as well as a single red rose worn on their lapel. It was probably silly but it was the best thing Kurt could think of to be able to spot each other in a crowd. The coffee shop wasn’t overly busy at this time of day, just enough to where a good number of the tables were occupied, but even still it seemed to be the best possible option.

He checked his watch once again and closed his eyes as he held his face in his hands, groaning at what a monumentally idiotic idea this undoubtedly was because who the hell does this anyway, who stoops so low as to hire a fucking escort to be their date for their ex’s wedding, just to save face. Pathetic didn’t even cover it, really. He was beyond pathetic. He was desperate, pure and simple, and there was no denying it anymore.

“Kurt?”

Kurt pulled his head out of his hands quickly at the unexpected voice, glancing up at the man standing before him.

It was a moment before he could really say anything, whether from shock of the person or from the perfect timing he wasn’t sure, merely staring at him as he tried to find his voice, feeble as it was. “David,” he breathed, sounding probably just as stunned as he felt.

Kurt hadn’t seen him in years, not since he’d left for New York that first fall after graduation, an awkward goodbye hug as they went their separate ways. They’d attempted a strange sort of friendship after Dave’s outing and subsequent suicide attempt and Kurt wanting to be there for him, but ultimately life just seemed to get in the way with the end of school and Dave just trying to keep his head above water.

That summer seemed like a blur, a strange transition time as they straddled the line between high school and adulthood. Dave started at Ohio State in late August while Kurt worked until eventually Blaine had pushed him into going to New York. He and Dave hadn’t seen much of each other over the summer between the chaos of everything else going on, and had barely found enough time to have their schedules coincide to where they could have enough time to hang out for an afternoon, though most of the time was spent packing Kurt’s things in boxes in preparation for his move to New York. In the end, after everything was packed and his room was left a mess of boxes and random items scattered about, everything seemed to hit Kurt all at once, like it was all finally real. He was leaving in only a couple of days and his entire life was going to change and nothing would ever be the same. When Dave went to leave that day, Kurt crossing the room to pull him into a tight embrace no matter how awkward it was, he almost wondered if that was it, if he’d ever see Dave again. It was strange. He’d known Dave since seventh grade and hadn’t ever really gotten to know him until finally it was too late. Kurt pulled away from him with a tight smile, the corner of Dave’s lips pulling up into a brief, shy half smile in return, and watched as he walked out of the door and down the stairs. It wasn’t until Dave was gone that he’d collapsed onto his bed, finally allowing himself to break down, trying and ultimately failing to blame it on merely being overwhelmed by everything. His friendship with Dave was already stilted as it was, there was no way they could keep it up in different parts of the country; it was too fragile, too foreign and new and would never last and they both knew it.

He was sure back then that he’d never see Dave again. Yet there he was, looking like he hadn’t aged a day. He had half a mind to think maybe it was kismet, not that he’d ever really admit how much he liked the idea of fate or destiny or what have you, and felt a smile slowly spread across his face at the sight of Dave standing there right in front of him.

That is, until Dave removed his coat and Kurt glanced down and saw it. A single red rose, pinned to his shirt.

Fuck.


	2. Daffodil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daffodil: rebirth and new beginnings.

Kurt knew he was staring, couldn’t seem to bring himself to _stop_ staring at Dave no matter how much he wanted to, but the shock coursing through him in that moment left him stunned. More than stunned, really. He could feel his heart beating wildly in his chest and hear it pounding in his ears as he continued to stare dumbfounded at the stupid flower pinned to Dave’s shirt, trying and failing to get some semblance of words to come out of his mouth.

This had to be some sort of coincidence, some cruel trick being played on him by the universe that the guy he hadn’t seen in over eight years just happened to walk back into his life wearing the same thing that he and this mystery man had decided on, right at the same time he was supposed to be meeting him. Because there was no possible way that Dave was the same guy that—

“Kurt?”

Letting out the shaky breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding, Kurt blinked quickly to shake himself of the surprise as he finally brought his gaze back to Dave’s expectant face. And by the look on his face, the way Dave was staring expectantly back at him, his eyes flickering down to the rose pinned to Kurt’s shirt as well before back up to his face, Kurt knew that apparently this really was just his luck.

He flashed Dave a smile, silently praying it didn’t look as forced as it felt. “Right, sorry. Sorry, I just— I was surprised, is all.” He gestured feebly across the table to the other chair, “Uhm, please — sit.”

Dave smiled back in return as he hung his coat on the back of the chair and took a seat, even as he hunched just slightly, and if he didn’t know any better he’d almost say Dave looked nervous, maybe even a little shy. Eight years might have passed but Kurt could see now that Dave was still the same awkward guy, curling on himself as if to stop from getting his feelings hurt. His entire demeanor reminded Kurt so much of that chilly Valentine’s Day from so long ago when Dave had confessed everything he was feeling at the moment to him that Kurt couldn’t help but smile at the memories it conjured up in that moment. Only this time it was real, a genuine smile at the thought of that cold February night.

“Sorry,” Dave mumbled, and Kurt tilted his head at him in confusion. “I didn’t know it was gonna be you. All they gave me was your first name, they do it to help us identify the clients out in public or whatever when we’re meeting for the first time, but that’s all I knew, I swear. If I knew it was you, I wouldn’t have… taken you on. As a client, I mean. It’s just, I mean I’d understand if you’d want someone else.”

“Why would you say that?”

Dave shrugged, averting his gaze for a moment. “I don’t know, because of our history, I guess? It’s sort of been a while. And you didn’t exactly look all too thrilled to see it was me, anyway.”

Kurt shook his head, smiling softly. “I was just surprised, David, that’s all. I promise.”

“You sure?”

“I’ll even give you a pinky promise you like we’re back in middle school if you really want,” Kurt teased, rolling his eyes, which seemed to appease Dave by the way he visibly relaxed into the chair, sitting a little straighter. “Besides, maybe it will be better this way. I was so nervous about doing this with someone I didn’t even know, it’s nice to know I’ll have a friendly face there with me.”

Dave flashed him a timid smile as Kurt saw him relax a little further.

“And for what it’s worth, I’m glad it’s you.”

He watched as confusion dawned on Dave’s face before finally morphing into what seemed to be a hint of scrutiny, eyes narrowing ever so slightly as he studied him. Kurt took a sip of his coffee before clearing his throat and taking a deep breath, giving Dave a shaky smile.

“You should probably go get a drink,” he muttered. “There’s a lot to talk about.”

Dave nodded once, the words seeming to break him out of whatever trance he’d fallen briefly into. “Right. I’ll be back, then.”

“Sounds good.”

Kurt grabbed his bag to retrieve a folder, setting it on the table and concentrating on flipping it open to remove the small packet of papers inside, eyes flickering up to look at the other man through his lashes anxiously. It wasn’t until he’d heard the scrape of the chair against the floor of the café before he could finally breathe a sigh of relief, closing his eyes tightly for a moment to steady himself.

He forced himself to focus on the matter at hand and keep himself busy by going through the papers, crossing things out in red ink and making notes in the margins all the while.

“What are you doing?”

Kurt glanced up to acknowledge Dave as he retook his seat, coffee now in hand, before going back to the paper to mark out another small section. “I’m getting rid of the parts that are now irrelevant to the situation we seem to have found ourselves in,” he said, voice high with nerves, steeling himself as he sighed. “Things I figured it might be helpful for my… _escort_ … to know.”

“Like what?”

Kurt looked over at him more fully now, placing the pen down on top of the papers and sitting back in his chair. “Just… background information on me that my boyfriend would probably know. How we met and started dating, which doesn’t really work in our current situation now. Things like that.”

“Ah. Got it.” Dave nodded down to the document at hand, eyeing it inquisitively. “Can I see?”

With a hesitant nod, Kurt grabbed the pen and slid the papers across the table, watching as Dave started to read. He knew, even after working on the stupid thing for the past week, that he’d gone a bit overboard. He’d put probably far too many small details in there with things he’d thought his escort — _Dave_ — should know. It was a lot of information to take in, and one of the reasons he’d wanted to meet up beforehand to get to know one another, but more than anything he wanted to be prepared, especially when it came to something like this. One slip up and the entire thing could essentially come crashing down around him and then this whole thing would have been for nothing and he’d be left nothing more than an embarrassed mess.

Dave stared down at the papers in his hand as Kurt watched him intently, trying not to let his nerves get the better of him as he waited.

He seemed to stop in his tracks at one part, glancing up to look at Kurt, eyeing him and a hint of a smile playing at his lips, some indiscernible expression on his face that Kurt couldn’t recognize yet.

“You’re an editor at Vogue?”

Kurt smiled after a moment, nodding. “I am,” he said. “Senior editor, actually. One out of a few. Multiple departments and all that, so there are a few different editors for each one. Overall not the highest position around but I’ve worked my ass off to get to where I am so I think it’s something to be proud of.”

“Totally. I mean really, that’s awesome. You _should_ be proud of it.”

Kurt ducked his head a little in embarrassment, trying to stop the flush from spreading across his cheeks. “Thank you, David.”

Dave looked at him for another long moment, the smile still there, though it seemed to have grown in pride. And that, that right there, was the expression Kurt hadn’t been able to identify before, though maybe he should have. It didn’t matter how far he’d come and how many people had expressed how proud they were of him for getting to where he was in his life now, it still filled him with a sense of overwhelming satisfaction each time, to know that he’d made someone feel that way about him, that they were just as happy about his success as he was. It was probably silly, maybe a little childish, to be so happy about how people felt about his success but it only helped to validate his feelings of where he was in his life. Eight years out of Lima and he could really say he got out of there and really made something out of himself. And that was worth more than anything else in the world. Maybe it was a little strange to feel that same sort of twinge of pride that Dave was happy and proud of him like he seemed to be, but still he couldn’t seem to stop it from bubbling to the surface, even from someone he hadn’t seen or even so much as spoken to in so long.

Kurt watched as Dave continued to read, letting his eyes roam over Dave’s form despite himself. Dave looked… fuck it all, he looked _good_. He’d certainly grown into himself over the years, dressing in clothes that actually fit him in all the right places, and seemed to have lost the godawful polo shirts he’d insisted on wearing in his younger years. His outfit at the moment didn’t appear to be high end by any means but even still, it looked damn good on him. The midnight blue dress shirt was definitely the right color on him, though red always seemed to suit him as well, and the jeans he had on were a bit more form fitting than Kurt remembered seeing him in before, no longer baggy like what seemed to be imprinted on his mind for whatever strange reason. Really he had no reason for Dave’s outfits from nearly ten years ago to still remain in his mind, and could really only chalk it up to being that he was in the fashion industry and had always been more interested in clothes than anyone he really knew. That could really be the only explanation for this—

“Kurt?”

Kurt shook himself out of his reverie, blinking quickly to refocus on the matter at hand. The matter at hand being the stupid words typed on the papers clasped lightly in Dave’s hands before him, and _not_ the sudden attractiveness of David Karofsky. God, it hadn’t been _that_ long since he’d had sex, a couple of months, sure, but certainly not long enough to warrant how inexplicably horny he apparently was now. That, or maybe Dave was that attractive all along and he’d just never noticed, or let himself notice. Of course, maybe Dave really _was_ that good looking. The agency Dave worked for seemed to think so anyway, prided themselves on the allure of the people they hired to be escorts for their company. “What?”

“You okay?”

“Fine, yes, I’m fine. Sorry,” he said, clearing his throat and gesturing to the papers. “You can, uhm — you can keep reading.”

Dave gave him a strange look but as told anyway while Kurt sat there, wanting to pound his head on the table for the way he was acting. He sat up straighter in an attempt to pull himself together, reminding himself that this was just a little business arrangement. And it would be better for the both of them if that’s all they thought of it as. A business arrangement, that was all. He’d hired Dave to be his pretend boyfriend, all for the sake of saving face in front of Blaine. Of course, this made things much more complicated in the long run. Now there were more things to figure out, things he hadn’t taken into account before.

With a sigh, he leaned over the table slightly, trying to stop his face from flushing at the crossed out part Dave was currently reading. “Please don’t laugh,” Kurt muttered. “I was sort of tipsy when I originally wrote that part and when I read it the next day it sounded a little silly, but also like a nice way to meet somebody, so I just… left it. But if you make fun of me for it you should know that I have no problems with kicking you under the table.”

Dave laughed, shaking his head. “I’m sure you wouldn’t,” he said, sounding unbothered by it before after a moment he gathered himself, shrugging. “And you’re right. It does sound nice. I met a boyfriend like that, actually.”

Kurt quirked an eyebrow at that. “In a bookstore?”

“Yeah, the one over on Seventh Street. It’s close to my apartment, or the one I have now anyway. It was sort of a trek to get to from my old place, but I was walking by it one day and just went in, and it became a regular place for me.”

“And the guy?” Kurt asked. “Your boyfriend, I mean. How’d you meet?”

“Oh, you know. I was sitting on the floor one day, reading with my back to one of the bookshelves, when this guy came up to me and started asking me where he could find this one book. I think he thought I worked there, actually,” he said with a laugh. “I had on a shirt that day that looked a lot like the ones the employees wear without really realizing it.”

Kurt smiled softly at the thought. “That’s nice,” he said. “You two aren’t together anymore?”

“No. It didn’t really last long, a few months or so. Turned out we just didn’t really have much in common, other than reading, and even then it wasn’t close to being the same type of book or anything. I like thriller horror stuff like Stephen King and history and he was super into comic books and fantasy. The sex was good at least, but other than that the whole thing was kinda doomed to fail from the start.”

Kurt nodded, thinking of his own relationship with Ian. “Got it. I’ve had a few of those myself. Relationships where it seems like sex is the only thing really connecting you.”

“Yeah,” Dave said with a nod.

“What about other boyfriends?” Kurt asked, taking a sip of his coffee. “Have you had many over the years?”

“Some. Not a whole lot, though. Most guys get kinda weird once they figure out what I do besides my day job.”

Kurt tilted his head in confusion. “Day job?”

“Yeah. I’m also a writer at the New York Times. Pays most of the bills but the uh… the date for hire thing covers everything else.”

“Oh. That’s awesome.”

“Yeah, I mean I like it enough. Gets a little boring sometimes and neither one of them are what I really wanna be doing with my life, but — you know. It’s a living anyway.”

“What would you rather be doing instead?”

Dave paused, seeming lost in his thoughts for a moment. “Oh, uh. Sports agent?”

Kurt stopped and set down his cup, regarding the man across the table for a moment before finally a small smile pulled at his lips. “A sports agent.”

“Yeah,” Dave said, shrugging. “You probably don’t remember, but — that day in the hospital, it sorta had a big effect on me. Made me want to really start living. And thinking of a good future for me, a career I could be happy with and see myself actually doing and something I really loved… I don’t know. But it made me want to go after my dreams. It’s stupid. You probably don’t remember.”

“David. Of course I remember. That day affected me a lot, too, you know. Despite what you seem to think.” He looked at Dave staring back at him anxiously, not unlike what he’d been feeling when he first showed up there that night. Dave was silent, taking long sips of his drink and apparently choosing to not say anything more on the matter, though if because he was nervous or due to something more beneath the surface Kurt wasn’t sure. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“Sorry, it’s just my curiosity is getting the better of me here and I have to ask. What made you get into this? The whole date for hire thing, I mean.”

“Oh. That, uhm… it was college. The company gives a pretty good percentage of what clients pay, the amount that they don’t take as a sort of finder’s fee or whatever you want to call it. But anyway I was in college and desperate for money after moving out here sophomore year. A quick Google search one night about how to make good money fast and I was making more than I would at any regular job and taking care of a lot of my tuition without having to deal with taking out so many student loans. It was just sorta a win win, I guess?”

“I can see that,” said Kurt with a small nod. “I know I’ll be paying off my student loans until I’m in my seventies, probably, unless something changes soon. It’s not like my dad was all that well off when I was growing up and I wasn’t really about to have him have to deal with co-signing on loans. I got a couple of scholarships but they only took care of a small bit of the bigger picture. So I get it. Doing what it takes, I mean, to get to where you really want to be.”

“Yeah,” Dave muttered solemnly, pausing as he looked back down at the papers still in his hands and reading over the crossed out words again. “We can still do the bookshop idea. If you want. Say that’s how we ran into each other again.”

Kurt’s eyes flickered down to the papers before looking back up at Dave and giving him a timid smile. “Are you sure? I’d understand if you didn’t want to, because of your ex, I mean. It’s just I just wouldn’t want to intrude on your memories with him.”

Dave shrugged, returning the small smile. “It’s cool, not like it was that great of a relationship anyway. Might be nice to override it with some better memories of a meet cute, even if it’s only a fake relationship. Besides, what’s more cliché of a New York meeting than a bookshop?”

“A _meet cute?_ ” Kurt repeated, trying not to let the laugh escape that was bubbling beneath the surface. “Sorry, just never thought I’d see the day when I’d hear David Karofsky mutter those words, jokingly or not.”

“What, you don’t think it’d be cute?”

“I do, that’s why I put it on that stupid piece of paper full of a ridiculous amount of information,” said Kurt, gesturing across the table. “It’s just hard to believe that any kind of meeting between us could ever end in anything other than at the very least a mild screaming match at best. I mean, you do remember when we first met, right?”

Dave laughed, “Yeah, seventh grade. Ms. Carter’s math class. You sat right in front of me.”

“Yes, and you insisted on poking at my back for half the class to annoy the shit out of me until I finally snapped and started yelling at you to stop, to which you yelled right back at me until we got sent to the principal’s office for fighting. And on the first day of the school year, no less. It was insane.” Dave, for his part, did at least have the decency to look a little ashamed, his cheeks coloring under the coffee shop’s lights as Kurt narrowed his eyes at him in amusement. “In hindsight, maybe I should have known when you refused to leave me alone and continued to tease and harass me for years that you had feelings for me.”

“What?”

“You know. The whole ‘pulling pigtails’ thing. Those stupid boys in middle school who make fun of their crushes and tease them any chance they can get. It wasn’t until you kissed me that day that I really realized that was what you were doing all along, though maybe I should have.”

“That’s not what I was doing,” Dave protested, the words sounding weak even to his own ears.

Kurt snorted, rolling his eyes. “Okay. If you insist.”

“Kurt, really, I—”

“Whatever. If you don’t want to admit it, that’s fine. But just know that it’s definitely what it seemed like. Anyway,” Kurt said, taking a long sip of the last drags of his coffee. “We should probably talk about this weekend.”

Dave nodded gravely, all traces of his previous smile gone and the tension returning as Kurt watched as he started to sulk in his seat a bit, hunching over slightly.

“Our flight is out of JFK tomorrow at twelve ten so we can either meet here or at my apartment and take a cab to the airport together, or else meet at the airport. If we meet at the airport I’d prefer we get there around ten thirty, if here or at my place then ten, just in case. I’ve never missed a flight before and I’m not about to start now, and especially not when I’m flying across the country. So. Here, my apartment, or the airport? Your choice.”

“Uh. Airport, I guess,” Dave mumbled, to which Kurt nodded curtly, unlocking his phone to put a reminder in his calendar.

“Fine. Ten thirty, then, don’t be late. That should give us plenty of time to get checked in and through security and maybe just enough time for some coffee or lunch, though I’m sure they’ll have food on the plane, but it’s always insanely expensive and I’d really rather not pay for that.”

“I’d never be late for something like this, okay, now can you drop the attitude and stop being such a bitch?”

“I’m sorry? I don’t have an _attitude_. This is a stupid little business arrangement, nothing more and nothing less. I thought maybe we could be friendly to make it a little easier and ease the tension of the weekend but it seems like you’re intent on making it harder for the both of us.”

“I’m not trying to—”

“But you are, though, because you’re being just as stubborn and bull headed as you’ve always been. But you know what? Just because you say something didn’t happen, it doesn’t make it true. You can deny all you want that you had a crush on me even back in seventh grade all you want but you and I both know that it’s true, because no normal guy acts like that, because I know that no other guys treated me like that until you roped Azimio into your little charade. Just like we both knew what happened that day in the locker room, no matter how much you didn’t want to admit it happened, all to save your stupid ego so you could pretend you weren’t attracted to guys, which we both knew wasn’t true. But sure. Deny it all you want. It doesn’t make any difference to me—”

Swiftly Dave reached across the table, the papers long forgotten as he grabbed onto Kurt’s fist he hadn’t known he’d been clenching in repressed anger, effectively halting his words. “You're right, okay?” he said, giving Kurt a small, hesitant smile. “I’m sorry. It’s just… it's hard to admit I was carrying a torch for you for that long, you know? I fought with myself for years, even after high school. It’s just hard to leave all that self hatred behind you when you grew up being told by everyone around you that you were wrong for just being who you were. You know? Or maybe you don’t, I don’t know, I mean you always seemed so fucking comfortable with yourself. Like you didn’t ever give a shit what people thought about you. But me, I struggled with it for years. I didn’t really get to that point until a few years ago, when I stopped hating myself so much.” He paused, catching Kurt’s gaze fully until finally letting go of his hand and retreating back into himself, voice quiet. “Anyway. Ten thirty at the airport — right?”

Kurt stared at him, watching as Dave reached into the inner pocket of his jacket to retrieve a pen, writing the time and place down on the first page of the small packet. He reached up to wipe away the tears that had started to pool in his eyes, valiantly ridding himself of them before Dave could see, though he wasn’t sure where the emotion had appeared from so suddenly but he’d be damned if he broke down in the middle of a coffee shop.

“I-I’m sorry.”

Dave looked back up at him, brows furrowed in confusion.

“That I didn’t call,” Kurt said, taking a deep, shuddering breath. “I always said I would, I always meant to, and then I just… I never did. I blamed it on getting caught up in work and getting into college and life getting in the way, but — I think I didn’t because I thought it might be too hard. To know that you had feelings for me that I felt like I couldn’t reciprocate, and then with what happened with Blaine that fall, I… I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine, really, I—”

“It’s not, though. You were going through so much and I just brushed it off like it was nothing. Like you didn’t matter to me at all, which you did.”

“Sure, I was going through a lot,” Dave agreed. “But I got myself into therapy and it never got that bad again, I never went to… that place again. I’m good now. I’m really good. Besides, I don’t know that I would’ve been able to handle being friends with you like that when everything else was going on, too, and my therapist actually said it was good for me to get away from it all. So you don’t have to feel guilty or anything, okay? I’m good. Really.” Kurt looked at him for a moment before nodding hesitantly and Dave smiled, sighing. “So. You said it was an ex’s wedding, right?”

Kurt gave him a tiny smile. “Yeah. You know him, actually.”

“I do? Who?” Dave said dubiously and Kurt watched as realization slowly dawned on him, his face paling. “Blaine. Of course it’s fucking Blaine.”

“Yeah. That’s… sort of why I needed a date, actually.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s just that, were it anyone else’s wedding I probably wouldn’t have been so hell bent on having someone there with me. But because it’s him, I’d really rather not go alone. And not only because I checked yes on the RSVP as me bringing a date when I sent it in because I had a boyfriend at the time.”

“Then why else?”

“Because he was my first love, I suppose?” Kurt said after a moment, shrugging. “I don’t know, it’s just… don’t get me wrong, it’s not like I’m still in love with him or anything. That train has long since left the station, years ago, and my feelings sort of started to dissipate the second he told me he cheated on me practically the second I left for New York, but— I may not love him anymore, we may only be fairly decent friends who only talk once every couple of weeks, but it’s still hard to think about him getting married. And I guess it would just be nice to have someone there with me when it finally happens. I mean they’ve been together for years so it was really only a matter of time and I knew it was bound to happen sooner or later and the guy’s nice enough anyway. They seem happy together. And I’m happy for them, I really am, he’s a great guy. But it’s just… have you ever been in love?”

Dave tried not to wince, voice quiet as he answered. “I… yeah. Once.”

“Okay, so this guy. Even if you were still friends with him, even if you weren’t in love with him anymore and years had passed since anything had happened between you, it would still be hard to see him get married to someone else — right?”

“Yeah. I get it.” Dave nodded, giving him a sad smile. He glanced down at the papers now resting on the table, reading over their fake meeting scenario once more.

 _We’ve been together for about a month and a half. We met in late September; I was heading into the bookstore to pick up something new that day. You should know, I’m really into historical romance. As in a ridiculous amount. It’s sort of my guilty pleasure actually, not many people besides one of my best friends and the bookshop workers know that I read it. I know it’s probably not the most masculine thing to read about and there are other genres I read as well but it’s just that it’s one of my favorites. Besides, in the past few years more and more authors have come out with historical romance including two men as the leads and it just made me even more interested in it. So needless to say, I love romance. I love love, actually. The feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you’re really into someone and that first kiss feeling and being swept off your feet and just feeling like you can’t get enough of each other. I love everything about it. It’s like magic, as insanely sappy as that probably sounds, and make fun of me all you want but I can’t help it, that’s what love feels like: magic. Anyway, I’m getting off track here. So let’s say I went in there that day looking for a new book. And I found a few, actually, and when I turned to go to the check out we bumped into each other and my books flew out of my hands and_ —

“I like this,” Dave said, looking up with a slight smile.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” laughed Dave. “Except I think I’d change one thing if I were you.”

“Okay. Which is?”

“The part where we both kneel down to get your books and just start talking and everything and it’s easy?” Kurt nodded, waiting. “I’d scratch that. I think you’re right. Any meeting between us would probably end in a screaming match.”

Kurt laughed. “Yeah. I think it would.”


End file.
